Friday, 22 November 2013

Despite the increased ubiquity and accessibility of video
images in the media, the arts, business and education, there has nevertheless never been a greater demand for still
images. One of the great challenges
photographers enjoy is capaturing movement in pictures – either
simulating motion or freezing it. I was
able to go out shooting with my art student daughter last weekend along the Edgeware Road as well as Oxford and Regent Streets. She encouraged me to experiment more freely
with the shutter speed and focus; the results are more interesting than had I
just been out snapping for the Christmas atmosphere.

Thursday, 21 November 2013

I’ve turned my attention from the changing leaves on the
trees to those that have fallen to the pavement. I find a particular beauty in the contrast
between those that have decayed in colour and have been tread upon and those
which are newly down. Only a few days
more before they’ve all been shed and actually that will be the time when the
beauty of branch structure becomes apparent.

Wednesday, 13 November 2013

The other day I had the great privilege of spending some
hours in Kew Gardens shooting with a very gifted and accomplished photographer,
Micky Thompson. We focused most of our
time along the path between the Palm House and Orangerie, just by the pumpkin patches and giant
mushroom sculptures. He gave me some
great tips, not just for taking pictures, but for seeing what’s there – what's
there in the detail – and bringing this into view. I’m so pleased with the results from the
shoot, despite the dull and damp conditions.

Whilst wondering near the Sackler Crossing, a couple were feeding the geese and gulls. So we were able to capture several in flight.

Saturday, 9 November 2013

I’d planned to run some mundane errands today in Chiswick
and Hammersmith. The weather was
horrible and I wasn’t packing any equipment, not even my little Sony. I got on the first train I could and instead
of getting off at Gunnersbury, I did so at South Acton, thinking this might have
been closer to Turnham Green. On my way
through a residential area, I noticed firstly that the houses were a bit bigger
and architecturally nicer than my street (terrace envy) and then secondly, an
unusual break in the Victorian-themed backdrop.
There was a huge mosaic on the back wall of a garden as well as painting and mixed media up the entire rear elevation of the mid-terrace house. Quite arresting: colourful, funny and
shouting to be noticed. I learned later
from the Londonist that this is The Treatment Rooms, apparently
owned by a Baroness Von Reichardt and this is her “ongoing self-contained
conceptual piece of mosaic art.” How cool is that? And how great is the iphone camera?

Inspired by some of the fantastic work being produced right
now by my older daughter at Art College in Falmouth, I dialled down my shutter
speed whilst taking pictures of the fireworks on Bonfire Night which were being
launched in Lawn Crescent, two streets from ours. Like I dialled it way down, and am so glad I
did. Also very glad that I didn’t know
what to expect, really, from the results.
Some look like neon hanging in the sky; others like coloured spun
sugar.

Perhaps next year I'll actually leave my bedroom to change perspective. Having said that....if it happens to be as damp and cold, I might just stay put and fiddle some other dials.

Several weeks ago one of my daughters moaned over my
enthusiasm for Downton Abbey, flatly stating that she loathed costume
drama. Well perhaps those weren’t her
exact words, but that was the gist of her sentiments. I replied in a way I often do (which some
find enlightening, others annoying), that though set in the 1920s, the
characters, their emotions and choices are as relevant today as ever, just like
Shakespeare.

And that rape and servitude
aren’t an act and a situation that humans have moved on from, but which are
very much part and parcel of everyday life for tens of thousands around the
world today. Whether in a domestic setting among family members or
complete strangers on the internet, abuse takes its toll on the spirit of the
victim and often emboldens the perpetrator.
At least in Downton, the servants appear to be paid a decent wage and
are treated with a degree of respect and courtesy. And though there has been tremendous progress
in terms of poverty alleviation around the globe, there is nonetheless considerable economic exploitation and
exclusion in both developing and developed countries, with accompanying social
and political unrest.

The following is my photographic protest of personal, economic
and social injustice.

Thursday, 7 November 2013

On the 3rd of November I was given the chance by the Kew
Village Market organisers to take pictures of the stallholders as well as
punters. This is like no other outdoor
market I’ve ever been to as the fare and crafts for sale are of such high
quality and it’s clear that the owners of all these small businesses care
deeply about their products, how they’re presented and the relationship they have with their customers. It’s
inspiring and clear that this market is something the community looks forward
to every month.

Friday, 1 November 2013

I’ve shared my pictures with many people over the course of
the past year, especially via social media and my local newspaper, the
excellent Richmond & Twickenham Times, to whom I owe a debt of gratitude
for all the pics of mine that they’ve published. The one picture that I received the most
kudos for is a collage I made of every door on my street. Taking the renowned Doors of Dublin as
inspiration, I carried out this project in the spring of this year. It appeared in the R&TT and also on the
Facebook page I manage for our street. I
really love the results that a collage gives when done well. Will hopefully be making more when I discover
the best software to do this with.

Despite the temperature dropping and evening closing
in earlier, what defines this time of year for me is the richness of colour and
warmth of wool and interiors, though tinged with a slight melancholia – knowing
that it’s a very long time until warmer temps return.

I’ve recently applied to the Kew Village market
committee for a pitch at their February market day.Really hoping this comes about as it would be
a great chance to see if there is any demand for my cards and mounted photos,
not to mention an opportunity to meet other local crafts-people and neighbours.